The purpose of this research is to explore the factors associated with family supports to the elderly. In the first phase of the research, the mechanisms of family attachments were studied through a focus on middle age and old age in Italian American families. Measures of interdependence were devised which tapped the capacities of families to satisfy dependency needs of the elderly parents. Observed variations in interdependence were investigated as they varied by social class, social and geographic mobility, intermarriage and ethnicity. In the current phase of the research, the project examines the point in time when the health of the elderly family number has declined to the point of dependency which requires social support. It focuses on the adaptation of the families to the stress of this period and how this adaptation varies on the basis of inter-dependence and other background factors. The final outcome, whether it be family supports, institutional supports or some combination, will be associated with the level of dependency of the elderly and the resources of the family in dealing with this dependency. How families vary in the solutions chosen will also be studied on the basis of social class and ethnicity (White, European Catholic and Protestant groups). Families are drawn from populations of elderly processed through discharge planning of two acute-care hospitals. The family is interviewed shortly after discharge and six months later. The elderly patients are also followed during that period to determine how the family responses and the outcomes selected influence their morale and health status.